The lighting of office work space requires either general area lighting such as overhead fluorescent or indirect lighting units or task lighting in which a light fixture is situated close to the work space and is intended to illuminate only the work space. In some situations, combinations of area lighting and task lighting are utilized. Task lighting units, for example desk lamps, are known to provide close up illumination. The applicant has discovered that the distance of the task lighting unit above the work surface is important to provide adequate lighting. If the fixture is too low, objectionable veiling reflections occur which can interfere with vision at work space. If the fixture is too high, adequate brightness levels at the work surface with reasonable lamp sizes is not achievable. In addition, the high location of fixtures makes it difficult to shield the user's eyes from direct glare.